In motor vehicles, so-called fields of view are legally-prescribed based on the type of motor vehicle, for example, motorcycles, motor vehicles for transporting passengers, motor vehicles for transporting goods, etc. The fields of view must be provided by a device for indirect viewing, conventionally a mirror, and must be viewable at all times by the driver sitting in the driver's seat using the device for indirect viewing. Depending on the type of vehicle and, in particular, on which areas around the vehicle can be directly viewed by the driver, different legal provisions require that certain fields of view are permanently and reliably viewable at all times using the devices for indirect viewing.
Therefore, for commercial vehicles, such as, for example, trucks or delivery vehicles, a device such as a primary mirror is currently provided on each of the driver's side and the passenger's side as a device for indirect viewing. By using the primary mirror, the vehicle driver can see a level and horizontal part of the road surface of a certain width that extends from a stipulated distance behind the vehicle driver's eye points up to the horizon. In addition, a band of lesser width must be viewable for the vehicle driver using this mirror, which band begins at a short distance behind the driver's eye points. Such legally-prescribed areas, which must be viewable permanently and at all times by the driver with the use of the devices for indirect viewing, will be designated as fields of view.
In recent times, it is becoming increasingly common to consider using, in addition to conventional mirrors as devices for indirect viewing, camera systems as devices for indirect viewing either in addition to or as a replacement for the mirrors. In such camera systems, an image sensor device continuously captures (detects and stores) an image. The (video-)data captured by the image capture unit are transmitted, e.g., using a supply unit and optionally after further processing, to a display device located in the driver's cabin. The display device depicts the corresponding legally-required field of view or a plurality of fields of view and optionally supplemental information, such as e.g., possible collision risks, distances to other objects, etc., for the area around the vehicle in manner that is permanent and viewable at all times for the driver.
Currently, such mirror replacement systems based upon camera usage are primarily utilized for passenger vehicles and in particular for the reverse-driving area. In these systems, the image capture unit is connected directly with the body of the vehicle substantially without any spacing or separation therefrom. The information obtained by the camera usage is transmitted in most cases supplementally to the conventionally-used mirrors.
A camera assembly having an image sensor sealed against environmental influences is known from DE 10 2005 028 144 A1. The camera assembly includes an outer housing and an image sensor attached to an electronic support, and the outer housing includes an optical segment having at least one imaging optic disposed in the optical segment. The optical segment is sealed in a media-tight manner relative to the electronic support, and a media-tight sensor space that accommodates the image sensor is formed.
A rearview camera for a vehicle is known from US 2004/0036768 A1, which includes a camera body and a lens. The camera body is attached to a mounting base, which retains the camera. The mounting base can be adapted such that it is mountable externally or internally on the vehicle, and a mounting angle of the mounting base points in the direction downward. A seal can be used in order to seal the camera relative to the rear wall of the vehicle.
A rearview device for vehicles is known from DE 695 09 040 T2, which includes a micro-camera and a control unit for the micro-camera. The micro-camera and the control unit are respectively provided in separated housings. The control unit performs the function of the power supply of the micro-camera and transmits the last-generated signal to the monitor.
When camera systems are to be used as mirror replacements, strict legal requirements can be expected. These requirements apply not only to the permanent and viewable-at-all-times depiction, but also to the image quality and resolution with which the images must be depicted on the display device in the driver's cabin. This helps ensure that the images are observable to the human eye in a manner corresponding to the depictions in a mirror and, as much as possible, do not confuse the driver. In particular, for the replacement of wide-angle mirrors, it is an additional challenge to ensure that a sufficient aperture angle of the image is depicted, while at the same time that the entire area, which is viewable by the wide-angle mirror in a conventional manner, and the corresponding associated field of view are depicted. On the other hand, for the replacement of a primary mirror, it is essential to ensure a sufficiently high resolution of the image. It is difficult to realize these requirements with conventional systems in which the image capture unit and a control unit/supply unit associated therewith are disposed in a manner separated from each other. For example, in some such systems, the control unit/supply unit is disposed in the vehicle interior and the image capture unit is disposed outside of the vehicle, generally speaking on the vehicle body, due to the large amount of data to be transmitted for providing a sufficient image resolution. In the alternative, the supply unit and the image capture unit have been consolidated in a single sealed housing, which is mounted on the outer portion of the vehicle, and thus must ensure the highest-possible sealing requirements for the image capture unit as well as the supply unit, in particular with regard to the image capture unit.